Created in 1969, the MSCI EAFE Index is widely recognized as the preeminent benchmark for measuring international stock market performance. It comprises 21 MSCI country indices, representing the developed markets outside of North America. Approximately $1.5 trillion is benchmarked to the EAFE Index globally. Additionally, the EAFE Index is the basis for the second largest exchange traded fund in the world.
"CME continues to expand its global reach and attract new customers with innovative products, targeted incentive plans and a network of telecommunications hubs around the world," said CME Chairman Terry Duffy. "The CME E-mini MSCI EAFE futures contract expands our growing international equity index product line. With the MSCI EAFE Index and some of the most widely recognized non-U.S. equity indexes, as well as all major U.S. indexes, CME now offers the tools to manage risk across nearly every major equity market in the world."
"We are delighted to have licensed our MSCI EAFE Index to CME as the basis of a futures contract," said Rabbe Ekholm, Managing Director of MSCI Barra. "A futures contract will further compliment the EAFE Index as the premier international benchmark."
"We are pleased to partner with MSCI Barra to offer this significant new hedging tool that will bring tremendous risk management benefits to global equity markets and solidify our position as the world's leading marketplace for equity derivatives trading," said Craig Donohue, CME Chief Executive Officer. "In addition to CME's broad offering of liquid large, medium and small cap U.S. indexes, and our foreign stock index products, our customers will now have a cost-effective way to replicate the MSCI EAFE Index as part of their overall portfolio management strategy."
The MSCI EAFE Index Country Weights as of October 31, 2005
| Country | Weight | Country | Weight | Country | Weight |
| UK | 25.1% | Italy | 3.7% | Denmark | 0.8% |
| Japan | 24.1% | Netherlands | 3.3% | Ireland | 0.8% |
| France | 9.4% | Sweden | 2.3% | Norway | 0.8% |
| Switzerland | 7.0% | Hong Kong | 1.7% | Greece | 0.6% |
| Germany | 6.9% | Finland | 1.4% | Austria | 0.4% |
| Australia | 5.3% | Belgium | 1.3% | Portugal | 0.3% |
| Spain | 3.9% | Singapore | 0.8% | New Zealand | 0.2% |
For more information on this product, please visit http://www.cme.com/mscieafe .
About CME
Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. ( http://www.cme.com ) is the world's largest and most diverse financial exchange. As an international marketplace, CME brings together buyers and sellers on CME Globex electronic trading platform and on its trading floors. CME offers futures and options on futures primarily in four product areas: interest rates, stock indexes, foreign exchange and commodities. The exchange moved about $1.4 billion per day in settlement payments in the first three quarters of 2005 and managed $43.8 billion in collateral deposits at September 30, 2005, including $3.8 billion in deposits for non-CME products. CME is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: CME), which is part of the Russell 1000(R) Index.
